WASHINGTON: The US Congressmen Tracey Mann and Rick Crawford along with 26 of their colleagues have sent a letter to the Biden administration urging them to hold India accountable under the World Trade Organization (WTO) rules, particularly regarding wheat and rice production.
“The biggest challenge to both domestic and export sales are related to US competitiveness,” the Members of the US House of Representatives wrote in the letter.
“American commodity producers are operating at a clear disadvantage to their competitors, primarily from India, where the government is subsidizing more than half of the value of production for rice and wheat, instead of the 10 percent allowable under WTO rule,” they wrote.
The letter encouraged the United States Trade Representative Katherine Tai and United States Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack to initiate the WTO litigation process.
“Trade distorting domestic support has always been a major challenge for farmers, and WTO rules were created to limit these practices,” said Tracey Mann.
“Ensuring all parties are cooperating under the same guidelines is paramount to international trade. My colleagues and I are calling on US Trade Representative Katherine Tai and US Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack to uphold their duty to our American farmers and ranchers to protect our domestic markets – it is time to level the playing field.”
“WTO rules were established in order to allow for a level playing field in which American producers could compete. It is the job of US Trade Representative Katherine Tai and US Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack to uphold these rules and protect our producers from rule breakers like India,” said Congressman Rick Crawford.
